RickMercer




1» The Camera Doesn't Lie
      Tue, 23 Mar 2010 20:32:00 -0500

Canada's 22nd Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, did something truly historic this past week. He did something that no Canadian prime minister had ever done before. He went on YouTube and answered questions. Now granted, by YouTube standards he's not as popular as say a cat that can flush the toilet, but the fact is he embraced the new media and for that he should be commended. Because I believe now more then ever, it is the Internet that can help save Canadian democracy. And it needs saving. And not from any outside forces, but from the people we have so tragically elected. Because believe me, they're out of control.Kids on field trips go into question period, having learned in school that democracy is something worth dying for. They leave an hour later convinced that blithering idiots rule the world. And can you blame them? Anyone who has watched question period live knows the evidence is on display. The problem is Canadians at home can't see that because all of the bad behavior is hidd


2» Double Double Standard
      Tue, 16 Mar 2010 21:18:00 -0500

A very wise man once said that the secret to success in politics is sincerity and if you can fake that you've got it made. On the flip side, if people ever get the idea that you're saying one thing and then doing another you're a dead man walking. Which is why, my guess is the Tories wish they could start this month all over again.First up we had Jim Flaherty's tough new budget. Jim announced we were all gonna have to make huge sacrifices and tighten our belts and then he led by example by sneaking out the back door, getting in a private government jet and flying to London, Ontario, so he could get his picture taken at Tim Horton's. Do as I say people, not as I do.And then we find out that hidden inside this tough cost cutting budget, an extra 13 million dollars a year for the Prime Minister's own privy council office. That's an extra quarter of a million dollars a week for the PMO. Talk about your sacrifices.And then there's the ongoing Helena Geurgis saga, which I d


3» It Went Downhill After the Dude in the Funny Hat
      Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:16:00 -0500

Usually I love a Speech from the Throne. As far as politics go it's pure show business. Everyone gets dressed up. There's an actual throne for the governor general and a little tiny chair for the prime minister to curl up in. And the whole thing starts when a dude in a funny hat marches up the hall and bangs on the door with an ebony rod, topped with a golden lion. Now unfortunately it all went down hill after that.For starters it went on forever. Avatar was shorter. Now maybe it was the anticipation. After all, the prime minister closed down government for three months so he could "recalibrate." Sometimes it's hard to live up to the hype. Now when this happens in Hollywood they bring in experts at the last minute to insert some sex and violence, to distract the audience. Unfortunately you can't just insert a car chase in a Throne Speech, so the Tories did the next best thing: they announced the creation of, wait for it... Seniors' Day. Now that's good government! Because as


4» The Bucks Shouldnt Stop Here
      Tue, 02 Mar 2010 21:47:00 -0500

When Kaillie Humphries was just six years old she saw Mark Tewksbury win a gold medal in the swimming pool and she was inspired to be an Olympian. 18 years later she got in a bobsled and won gold on a mountain. That is a legacy of Canadian Olympians.And boy did we ever meet a great bunch this time around, eh? Alexandre Bilodeau, Clara Hughes, Virtue and Moir, Joannie Rochette, the list goes on and on. All amazing Canadians.But now that the Olympics are over, all of these athletes are worried that the funding for amateur sport is gonna dry up. And you know what? They should be. Cause so far all signs out of Ottawa seem to indicate that the minute that flame goes out, the tap's getting turned off. And as we've been told it's a mighty big tap. Huge amounts of money!And see this is the thing about governments; governments can take any amount of money and they can make it seem like a lot or a little. And we've been told over and over again that this government this wonderfu


5» A Cynic and the Olympics: Let the Games Begin
      Tue, 09 Feb 2010 20:51:00 -0500

Some people see the glass as half empty. Other people see the glass as half full. I see the glass, I blame the Prime Minister. I'm what you may call a cynic. I can be cynical about anything, even the lead up to the Olympics. Not that it was hard. In certain Ottawa circles it's been a parlour game, sitting around guessing how many medals our Olympians have to win in order to guarantee this government a majority.Mother Theresa would be cynical listening to that. But that said. Once the games begin later this week, I am in. For starters, the entire world is going to freak when they see how beautiful Vancouver is. See we forget, we take this for granted but British Columbia, that's one sexy looking province. Seriously, I expect some Germans heads will popright off, Japanese too.And then there are the athletes. And really it's all about them. The 206 members of Team Canada. Now, I'm very lucky. I have a job where I've got to meet a lot of Olympians and a lot of Paral


6» No Touching
      Tue, 02 Feb 2010 19:36:00 -0500

For Stephen Harper, a good cabinet minister is like a well-behaved child from the fifties. They should be seen and not heard, minus the seen part. Which is why the first time most of us heard there was a woman named Gail Shea in cabinet was when another woman from New York decided to smack her in the face with a tofu pie.You know being a member of Parliament is bad enough. It's not like the job comes with a lot of respect. Those days are long gone. Most people would rather see their kids go into a life of air conditioner repair than politics. But bottom line is we elect these people and when we do, we expect them to be accessible to the public. That's their job.And if we don't like them there's plenty of ways to protest that are actually effective. Hell, so many people protested against Stephen Harper last week the man is in full-blown panic mode. He's out there as we speak running around saying all of a sudden his brand new legacy is going to be protecting women and children


7» Politicians Are Not the Kind of Tools Our Soldiers Need
      Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:19:00 -0500

There's no doubt about it; Canadians have been very generous in Haiti. People in this country have given an incredible amount of money. But once again it's members of the Canadian Forces that are doing the heavy lifting. Because really by the time most of us realize just how devastating this situation was, by the time most of us sat down at our laptops and made a donation, a thousand Canadian soldiers were already on their way to Haiti. And a thousand more show up this week.Imagine if that was your job. Just drop everything and go to Hell on Earth and you have no idea when you're coming home to your family. Because I don't know what it's like where you work, but people at the CBC complain when the elevators are on the fritz. But that's soldiers for you. That's what they do. And that's why we admire them. And that is why soldiers make the perfect political prop. In the old days politicians loved to get their pictures taken with babies. These days, it's soldiers. Which is why this past J


8» Polls Suggest Somebody Did Something Stupid
      Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:01:00 -0500

So how about those polls hey?For the first time in a very long time the Liberals and the Tories are essentially tied, well at least they're within the margin of error. Now polls never tell the full story but this much is certain: whenever the party in power drops 15 points in 15 days, you can be assured of one thing -- someone in charge just did something really stupid. In this case the Prime Minister figured he could suspend Parliament for three months and get away with it, because in his words Canadians just don't care. Boy was he wrong. Wow. He should get out more. Maybe go to a Tim Horton's. Get a feel for the place.See this is what I love about Canada. Yes, we are apathetic. But the minute anyone tries to use our apathy against us suddenly we start to care big time. It's funny the Prime Minister doesn't get this. Instead he just keeps saying, "Oh, don't worry. Yes, I've suspended Parliament, but don't worry, I'm hard at work." You know what? Big deal, of course


9» A Matter of Interest
      Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:12:00 -0500

So here it is, the holidays are over, and everyone is back to work. That is, unless of course you're a member of parliament. Because as we all know the Prime Minister has decided to suspend parliament so we can all focus on the Olympics. Which I think is very nice of him because I believe that Canadians will focus on the Olympics, once the Olympics actually happen. Which is over a month from now. Right now, it is the middle of January and Canadians are focused on one thing and one thing only Our credit card bills. If you don't believe me Prime Minister ask your chef or your driver. They will tell you. There I was this week looking at my Visa bill and I felt like the dude from The Da Vinci Code. Looking at the parchment, trying to decipher what exactly happened over the holidays. And then I wondered, what kind of interest rate are they charging me here. So I get out the magnifying glass, the really powerful one I have lying around in case I want to examine some protozoa. And I saw in


10» Days of Snow Days
      Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:35:00 -0500

There's a very good reason why the word prorogue doesn't come up that often in our society. Why would it? The word has absolutely no resonance with anyone in Canada because the notion that you can shut down anything for months at a time is a total fantasy. That's the thing about life; it's relentless. If you are an adult, and live in the real world, proroguing isn't on the agenda in much the same way levitating isn't. God knows I love the idea of proroguing. Everyone in Canada has lay in bed and prayed for the elusive snow day. The idea that while you slept the heavens opened up and dumped so much snow on the ground that the front door can't open and the school bus just can't come. We all remember snow days and that glorious feeling that the deadlines, the tests, the irritating people, the routine and the responsibilities could be avoided for one entire magnificent day with no consequences whatsoever. And if you didn't do your homework, or you were heading into what you knew was goin